Arsenal 1 – 0 Atletico Madrid – Match Report

Bukayo Saka’s goal just before half-time saw us reach the Champions League final for the second time in our history as we beat Atletico Madrid 1-0 at an ecstatic Emirates Stadium.

With the game finely poised after last week’s 1-1 draw in the Spanish capital, we grabbed the all-important goal on 44 minutes when Leandro Trossard’s shot was parried into Saka’s path to tuck home, and set up a grandstand second 45.

Some excellent defensive shifts saw us get over the line as we repelled everything the visitors threw at us, and backed by deafening support throughout, we got over the line to book our spot in the final in Budapest at the end of the month against either Bayern Munich or Paris Saint-Germain, and one last step away from our dream of lifting the European Cup for the first time in our history.

SAKA’S STRIKE

The biggest night in Emirates Stadium’s 20-year history began with a bang, before the teams even entered the field. Pyro, tifos and fervent chanting from all inside greeted their arrivals, setting the tone for the evening.

Just like the first leg, the game began with both teams feeling each other out as they settled into proceedings. A superb tackle from Declan Rice snuffed out a chance for Giuliano Simeone after David Raya palmed a cross into his path, while Gabriel uncharacteristically took aim from 25 yards and saw a grasscutter skim wide of Jan Oblak’s goal.

The tension was palpable, but we kept probing. Myles Lewis-Skelly saw a low centre evade everyone as it rolled across the face of goal, before Antoine Griezmann was lucky not to concede a penalty when he clumsily bundled into Leandro Trossard inside the box.

As the half crept towards its conclusion, we had dominated the possession and territory but didn’t have the lead we deserved. But all that changed with seconds to play in the half when a fine through ball by William Saliba allowed Viktor Gyokeres to get in behind the defence.

The Swede managed to keep the ball from the on-rushing Oblak before crossing for Leandro Trossard at the back post. The Belgian took his time to find the space for a shot, but it proved pivotal as his low effort was well saved by Oblak, but smart movement from Saka saw him sneak in front of two Atleti defenders and prod the rebound into the net to spark wild celebrations that ran through into the interval.

DEFENSIVE MASTERCLASS

We couldn’t rest on our laurels though with Diego Simeone’s team netting in all 15 of their Champions League games this season, and needing one more to stay in the competition, they began the second half brightly.

They nearly grabbed an equaliser five minutes after the restart when a long ball caused William Saliba to inadvertently head it backwards into the path of Simeone, who rounded Raya and looked set to score. However Gabriel came to the rescue with a last-ditch sliding challenge to nudge the ball out for a corner.

Raya then made a good stop to deny Griezmann while substitute Martin Odegaard fired just over at the other end, and with 25 minutes to go a golden chance went begging when a fine cross by Piero Hincapie fell on a plate for Gyokeres who seemed set to bulge the net but instead steered his cushioned finish fractions over the crossbar.

But with the minutes ticking away, Atleti continued to fight and Alexander Sorloth miskicked when a big chance came his way to equalise with Gabriel mopping up the danger.

But after battling and scrapping for every ball during five minutes of stoppage-time, the final whistle brought scenes of joy never seen before at Emirates Stadium as our players celebrated wildly with our supporters around all four corners of the ground.

WHAT’S NEXT

Our quest to win our first Premier League title since 2004 continues when we head to West Ham United on Sunday, followed by an eight-day gap before we host Burnley at Emirates Stadium on Monday, May 18. We then wrap up our league campaign with a trip to Crystal Palace on Sunday, May 24.